Don’t let Edwards mislead you

Give the old man his due. Former governor and prison inmate Edwin W. Edwards knows how to milk any occasion for as much positive
publicity as one person can generate. The Baton Rouge Press Club probably can’t remember any of its news conferences that
drew as much attention as the one Monday when Edwards was there to announce he is running for Congress.

Robert Mann, a columnist for The Times-Picayune and holder of the Manship Chair in Journalism at LSU, described the occasion
best.

“Bathed in the TV lights and facing
more than a dozen cameras, it was clearly a heady day for the
ex-governor, ex-con,” Mann
said. “He clearly enjoyed every moment back under the klieg
lights, including the grand entrance, as he and his wife, Trina,
pushed through a phalanx of photographers, the former governor
steering a baby stroller — the passenger, his infant son, Eli.

Edwards, 86, will run for the 6th
Congressional District seat that is being vacated by U.S. Rep. Bill
Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge,
who is trying to unseat U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., in
November. Parishes in the district include all or parts of East
Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Lafourche, Livingston,
Pointe Coupee, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. John, Terrebonne
and West Baton Rouge.

Congress wouldn’t be anything new for
Edwards. He served the former 7th Congressional District from 1965 until
1971 when he
ran for governor for the first time and was elected. However,
political analysts say although he could probably make the runoff
for the 6th District seat, they don’t think he can be elected.

“I haven’t had this much attention
since the trial,” Edwards said, and therein lies his major problem — the
trials. His liberal
code of conduct has dogged him for much of his political life.
Edwards admitted, for example, that a South Korean businessman
gave his wife $10,000 in cash while Edwards was a congressman. And
he said in 1976 he saw no problem with American businessmen
having to pay bribes to foreign officials to sell their products
abroad.

Edwards was indicted in 1985 on charges
of conspiring to obtain and sell state hospital construction permits.
The jury couldn’t
reach a unanimous verdict, and a mistrial was declared. He was
tried a second time, along with four others, and all five were
acquitted. In 1998, he was indicted on charges of rigging the
issuance of riverboat gambling licenses, and a year later for
fraud in an insurance case.

A conviction on 17 counts of
racketeering fraud and extortion involving those casino licenses came in
2000, but six of those
were dismissed. Edwards was acquitted in the insurance case, but
he was sentenced to a 10-year prison term, and served eight
on the gambling charges.

The Associated Press said, “Before and
after his prison term, he defended himself as a victim of an unfair
federal judge in
Baton Rouge, perjured testimony by former friends who had sought
casino licenses and an overzealous federal government. Federal
prosecutors denied all of those accusations.”

Actually, wiretapped conversations played during Edwards’ corruption trial proved to be extremely damaging evidence. Listeners
heard a plotting and scheming side of Edwards they hadn’t seen or heard before.

Some have said Edwards got in legal
trouble because he couldn’t say no to his friends. And you can be sure
those who are still
around are happy to see their old pal trying to get back into the
political rat race. Jeremy Alford of LaPolitics.com mentioned
that “hangers-on from old campaigns, like staffers and
fund-raisers,” attended the Monday press conference.

Edwards accepted his punishment and served his term without showing any public bitterness. He was released in 2011, and has
successfully managed to stay in the public limelight since that time.

Mann, who has worked with some outstanding Louisiana congressmen, gave all of us food for thought about Edwards in his Monday
column.

“His candidacy will make national news,” he said. “The national media will flock to Baton Rouge to cover the story. And when
he makes the runoff, every national news outlet in the country will report it.

“And the rest of the country will laugh at us. They’ll say, ‘Look at those ignorant, corruption-tolerating idiots.’

“So, laugh at Edwards’ jokes if you like. Snicker at the idea of an 86-year-old ex-con running for Congress with his infant
son at his side.”

“It’s all quite entertaining.”

“Except, the joke’s on us.”

Edwards still has his wit and charm,
and is always entertaining. No one can match him when it comes to
reacting to questions
and criticism in his quick and disarming manner. But don’t be
fooled by his winsome ways. He escaped retribution for his misdeeds
on a number of occasions, but eventually got what he deserved.

Don’t expect Edwards to ever admit he did anything wrong. As I said when he went to prison in 2002, Edwards has trouble with
the truth.

•••

Jim Beam, the retired editor of the American Press, has covered people and politics for more than five decades. Contact him at 494-4025 or jbeam@americanpress.com.

The rest of the country is already laughing at Louisiana. They say, "Look at those ignorant idiots who consistently vote against their own best interest." We are among the poorest, sickest, least educated people in the country but we keep electing state and federal officials who campaign against a living wage; against affordable health insurance and against affordable education. They tell us they are going to keep us living in poverty but we vote for them anyway. There are no outstanding Louisiana congressmen. If there was we would not be in the bad shape we're in. Even at 86, Edwards can't be worse than what we have now.